Kill the Traitor
by riverflowertheimmortalwolf
Summary: Stagfoot's life is torn apart when RiverClan collapses. The only cats left alive is Stagfoot, two apprentices...and the traitor. With Ivypaw and Stormpaw, he sets off to avenge his fallen Clan. Challenge from CharlieClan. Rated T for violence.
1. Chapter 1: Torn Apart

**This is a challenge from CharlieClan. One of the characters in this story is in one of my other stories, which is _Angel_. The character is a Dark Forest cat named Cloudleap. Read to find out about his past!**

* * *

Screeches ripped throughout the camp as cats leaped upon one another, claws flailing. A brown cat with dark brown paws, Stagfoot, stood at the entrance of the camp. He stared in frozen horror with his mouse still hanging from his jaws, like a cat frozen on the Thunderpath. He had just came back from hunting. Two apprentices hung out behind Stagleap, eyes wide.

Suddenly, Flowertail, one of his Clanmates, slammed into the stone wall next to Stagfoot. Her blood spattered Stagfoot's paws. He dropped his fresh-kill, dread filling him as he saw her dead, glazed, eyes.

"Flowertail?" One of the apprentices, a whispered.

Stagfoot shook his head, overcoming the shock. "Please!" Stagfoot begged. "Please stop fighting. You're all my Clanmates! Why are you fighting?" Of course, no cat answered. The medicine cat, Heatherwhisker, shrieked as she was dragged out of her den.

Stagfoot realized the cat dragging her was Shatterheart. The gray-and-white tom's strikingly blue eyes gleamed with hatred as he ripped her throat out.

"Stop!" Stagfoot screeched. "Please, stop killing! Please…" He watched helplessly as his dear Clanmates fought. Adderthroat clawed repeatedly at Fawnspot's belly. Stonepetal pounced onto Frogleg's back, tearing at his fur. Oakclaw and Birchtooth, who were brothers, rolled over and over, trying to reach each other's throat.

"Quick!" Stagfoot whispered to the apprentices, herding them away into the forest. "You must hide! It is not safe!"

"But what about Frostpaw?" the another apprentice, a black she-cat, asked. "And Cragpaw?" Stagfoot shook his head, urging them on.

"Come on, Ivypaw," the first apprentice, who was a blue-gray tom, tried to calm her. "We'll do what Stagfoot says."

"Okay, Stormpaw," Ivypaw whispered. Stagfoot found a hollow tree, and bundled them into it.

"You'll be safe here," Stagfoot assured the shaking apprentices. "Don't move. I'll come back for you."

"Promise?" Ivypaw looked up with her wide deep amber eyes.

"Promise," Stagfoot gave her a quick lick on her ear to comfort her. "Your brother here will take care of you." Stormpaw nodded, who curled his tail around his sister's. Stagfoot turned away, and bounded down a slope leading to his Clan's camp. He cautiously brushed his way through the leaves, wondering why everything suddenly went silent.

He gasped when he entered camp. The dens were torn apart, revealing the bedraggled nests inside. The camp was completely destroyed. But the worst part was that dead bodies littered everywhere, and blood had turned the ground red where it soaked in.

And in the middle of it, stood the traitor Shatterheart, his battle-hungry eyes trained on Stagfoot.


	2. Chapter 2: Aftermath

"Shatterheart?" Stagfoot whispered. Shatterheart's golden eyes blinked slowly. The sun shined on his dark tabby gray pelt, which glittered with fresh blood. Then he bounded away, vanishing into the shadows of the thin trees.

Stagfoot was too numb with shock to follow him. He stared at his Clanmates around him. Dead. Some of them were even still on top of others, claws frozen in motion. The heavy stench of death and blood hung in the air. Then he spotted the other apprentices. They had clawed each other to death. Stagfoot plodded towards the nursery. He didn't want to look. His instinct told him not to. But he did.

He wished he never did.

Stagfoot gasped at the sight, horror-filled and deeply saddened. There, the queen Thornleaf lay splayed out in front of the nursery entrance, as if she had made one last attempt to protect her kits. Sadly, there were three kits that no longer wriggled and squeaked. Instead, they lay still and lifeless, their throats slashed open. There was pure terror in their half-lidded eyes.

Stagfoot felt bile rising in his throat. He turned away from all of his Clanmates. What had made them kill each other?

"Stagfoot."

Stagfoot jumped, his hackles rising. Who was it? The voice was quiet and weak, almost a whisper. The brown tom turned around.

It was the RiverClan leader, Reedstar. _His_ leader.

"Reedstar!" Stagfoot hurried over to the dark brown tabby. He was laying down, blood caking his thick fur. So many numerous wounds covered him that Stagfoot couldn't count. Stagfoot remembered seeing him jumping onto the Boulderpile many times to address his Clan. He had looked big, sleek, and powerful. Now, he looked small and pathetic.

"Stagfoot," the dying leader croaked. "Did Shatterheart escape?"

"What do you mean?" Stagfoot looked puzzled. "Did he do…" He suddenly remembered that Shatterheart had killed Heatherwhisker. She was helpless! Anger swelled inside him.

"He is a traitor," Reedstar rasped. "He...he was the one who triggered our Clan's collapse." Reedstar coughed violently, wincing as blood trickled out of the side of his mouth.

Stagfoot bent down, placing a gentle paw on his leader's bloodied shoulder. "Please don't talk," he murmured. "You need to rest. I'll try to find some cobwebs to help you."

"No," Reedstar shook his head slowly. "I am...already dying. I will make the journey to StarClan soon."

Stagfoot's face was creased with worry and anxiety. "B-but...Reedstar! You have five lives!"

"I lied," Reedstar wheezed. "I...have three lives. But even that...cannot save me. These wounds...are too...severe." He went into another bout of coughing. Stagfoot flinched. His leader must have been going through a lot of pain.

"Reedstar," Stagfoot said quietly. "Please don't speak more. You'll lose your strength."

"I already have," Reedstar grunted. "Listen...to me. RiverClan...is almost dead. You can create a new RiverClan. Collect cats to join. Make RiverClan grow strong again. Lead them...well. I trust you...to do so." Reedstar took one last shuddering breath, then grew still. Stagfoot laid his head upon Reedstar's matted fur, not caring if he got covered in blood.

Then he yowled to the sky, pouring all his grief out.

* * *

Shatterheart dreamed. He woke up in a place filled with the smell of decay and dead trees. He saw a white cat padding towards him. His paws were covered in blood. Shatterheart had an odd feeling that the blood had been there for a long time.

"Welcome, Shatterheart," the white cat greeted. "This is the Dark Forest."

"Oh, you!" Shatterheart meowed. "You visited me in my dreams, right? You also told me to destroy RiverClan."

"Yes," the white cat's eyes glinted. "But my revenge is not complete yet. Pikefang still lives in Stagfoot."

"What?" Shatterheart looked confused. "What does this Pikefang have to do with Stagfoot?"

"Never mind," the white cat whisked his tail. "You hated RiverClan because your mother fell in love with a WindClan cat, yes? And that RiverClan never punished her, but instead resented you?" Shatterheart nodded.

"To complete your revenge," the white cat continued, "you have to destroy ThunderClan."

"Why?" Shatterheart questioned.

"They are too powerful. I have received a prophecy. 'Darkness and destruction will fall upon the Clans, if thunder is not destroyed first.'"

"What should I do?" Shatterheart asked.

"Weave your way in. Join ThunderClan. Earn their trust. Then _destroy_ them from the inside," the white cat hissed. "And, if you ever see Stagfoot, then kill him.

"Then I will do so," Shatterheart meowed. "There is one more thing I need to ask of you. What is your name?"

"Cloudleap," the white cat with the bloodstained paws answered, eyes glinting. "You may go now." Then Shatterheart disappeared from the Dark Forest.

"Ah, he's awake now," a brown tabby tom stalked from the shadows. "Did you really receive a prophecy?"

"That was made-up, Crowstrike," Cloudleap spat. "Dark Forest cats do not create idiotic gibberish that 'predicts the future' like StarClan."

"What are you going to do about the surviving RiverClan cats?" Crowstrike inquired.

"Nothing for now," Cloudleap growled. "But, Shatterheart will eventually find Stagfoot and kill him."


	3. Chapter 3: Haunted

The gray cat didn't seem to notice the white cat. The white cat grinned in a scary way, then disappeared. The gray cat took a step away. "Who are you?"

Stagfoot blinked. He never thought about introducing himself. Ivypaw shyly stayed behind Stagfoot. Stormpaw looked up at Stagfoot, as if expecting him to answer the stranger's simple question.

"My name is Stagfoot," Stagfoot introduced himself. "And this is Ivypaw and Stormpaw. We are of RiverClan, and are seeking for new cats to join."

The gray loner looked at him as if he spoke in fox language. "Er...okay." He blinked slowly. He looked plenty confused.

"If you want to join, cross that river," Stagfoot pointed his tail to the other side of the river. "Or, you can join us on collecting cats."

"I think I'm fine where I am," the loner meowed hastily. "But, I'll consider your offer." Stagfoot dipped his head politely, then moved on with the apprentices.

"Did you see that white cat?" Stagfoot questioned. "He had blood on his paws."

Stormpaw tipped his head to one side. "I don't remember seeing a white cat."

"Much less one with blood on his paws!" Ivypaw added. "We didn't smell any other strange cat besides that weird loner."

"He seemed to be a ghost," Stagfoot tried to explain. The apprentices' faces were blank. _Did I really imagine that?_ Stagfoot wondered. _The white cat seemed to be staring at me. Maybe I didn't get enough sleep._ He shook his head. _Why does this keep haunting me? Something feels wrong about this._

Stagfoot tried to push away the disturbing thought with a new one. _I must hunt down Shatterheart. He killed my Clan._

They traveled until sunhigh. Then they stopped to rest and hunt.

"There's no river to fish in," Stormpaw complained. "How can we get food?"

"I see you haven't been taught to hunt land prey, yet," Stagfoot said. "I will teach you. Follow me." The apprentices followed him into the forest.

He opened his mouth to let the forest scents flood in. His nose twitched. The scents here weren't as pleasant as the fresh scent of the river.

"I am scenting for prey," Stagfoot explained. "Now, what land prey can you smell?" Stormpaw and Ivypaw tasted the air.

"Mouse," Ivypaw sniffed at the air.

Stagfoot nodded. "That's right. Stormpaw, have you caught the mouse scent yet?"

"Yes," Stormpaw wrinkled his nose. "It's kinda musky."

Stagfoot dropped to a crouch, placing his paws lightly and carefully on the ground. Then, he suddenly pounced, uncovering a mouse in a bush.

"How did you do that?" Ivypaw exclaimed. Stagfoot stood up, the mouse swinging limply in his jaws.

"I'll teach you," Stagfoot mumbled through his fresh-kill.

The rest of the day Stagfoot spent his time teaching the apprentices how to hunt land prey. Finally, at nighttime, the cats rested, their bellies full with warm prey.

"The rabbit was kinda good," Ivypaw murmured. "I never though that land prey could taste good."

"Birds don't taste as good," Stormpaw commented. "I have to pick feathers out of my teeth, and they taste a bit stringy anyways."

"I'll be on watch," Stagfoot volunteered.

"At least let us take watch too," Stormpaw said. Ivypaw agreed.

"Okay," Stagfoot nodded. "I'll wake one of you when it's time." The apprentices quickly dozed off. Stormpaw snored softly. Stagfoot felt his fur prickling. He wasn't familiar with this place. There could be dangers anywhere.

Then he saw the white cat again. The white cat was standing behind a tree, part of his body showing. His white pelt glowed like a ghost. Stagfoot shuddered involuntarily when he saw the bloodstained paws once again. Why did the cat have blood on his paws? He wasn't imagining this cat.

The white cat cocked his head, as if curious. Well, maybe he _was_ curious...in a creepy way. His clear blue eyes showed nothing but interest. The white cat seemed to be not hostile.

Nevertheless, Stagfoot felt something wrong, very wrong with this cat. Why was this mysterious cat haunting him?

The white tom padded towards him, leaving blood prints behind. Stagfoot took a sharp intake of breath. This cat seemed to be a spirit, but not. Where was the blood coming from? The white cat stopped.

Suddenly, the white tom turned around and fled.

"Wait!" Stagleap called. "Why are you running? Please come back!" But the cat had disappeared. He sat back, discontented. With nothing else to do, a single though repeated over and over in his mind. _Kill Shatterheart. Kill Shatterheart. Kill Shatterheart._

That's right. Stagfoot ripped at the ground restlessly, imagining it was Shatterheart.

 _You should worry, Shatterheart. I'm coming for you. And I_ will _kill you like you did to my Clanmates._

* * *

 **Whew! This is a long challenge. Anyways, just to let you know, the next chapter will be the last. And...it will have action! I know that this chapter isn't too exciting. So prepare! For the last! Chapter!**


	4. Chapter 4: Avenged

As the cats traveled, Stagfoot made them get used to hunting land prey, occasionally drifting to the river to fish. He started teaching them battle moves. Soon enough, they mastered the moves, and together, they could beat Stagfoot himself in a fight.

"Should we start going back to RiverClan camp?" Stormpaw asked. "We should check if that loner is still there."

Stagfoot wanted to say, _But I'm searching for Shatterheart! I need to find him, and kill him!_ He dared not not say this out loud. The apprentices wouldn't like it.

"Hello," a voice suddenly came out of nowhere. Ivypaw jumped. Stagfoot turned around to see a black tom with pale gray legs. Stagfoot noticed something odd about this new cat. He had one green eye, and the other golden.

"Wow," Stormpaw whispered to Ivypaw. "That's an even weirder cat than the loner. Why does he have strange eyes?" Ivypaw's reply was stomping on his paw. Stormpaw almost squealed.

"Shhh," Ivypaw hissed quietly. "Don't be rude. He could be a new addition to our Clan."

"Hello," Stagfoot greeted. "What brings you here?"

"My name is Snake," the young tom introduced himself. "A gray cat told me of you. You are the Clan cats?"

"Yes," Stagfoot replied. "Would you like to join?" Snake hesitated, his tail twitching.

"Together, we can catch lots of food," Ivypaw shyly offered. "I heard that rogues like you have a hard time surviving."

Snake nodded. "As long as I don't go hungry," he muttered. "Fine."

"First cat!" Stormpaw meowed. Snake frowned at this. "So, where do we go?"

Stagfoot badly wanted to leave them to go find Shatterheart. Again, he saw that white cat staring at him through the trees. He shook his head, and when he looked up again, the cat had gone.

"Follow us," Stormpaw puffed out his chest importantly. "We know the way." Ivypaw nodded slightly. Snake looked at her, interested. Ivypaw averted her gaze from him.

Stagfoot led the way back. Soon enough, they saw that gray loner again.

"Oh, hi!" he meowed. "I've decided to join. Um, so, what am I supposed to do?"

"Follow us," Stormpaw answered. He jumped into the water first, swimming smoothly. Ivypaw slid in after him, more graceful. Stagfoot ear twitched irritatingly when he saw Snake staring at her in wonder.

The gray loner waded in, swimming to the other side.

"You swim?" Stagfoot stared at him.

"Yeah," the gray loner drew a paw over his ear casually. "What?" Snake pawed doubtfully at the water.

"You can use the stepping stones," Stagfoot suggested to Snake.

"What? Oh," Snake looked next to him. "Yeah, I was just testing out the water." He jumped the stones as Stagfoot swam to the other side.

"First," Stagfoot asked the gray loner. "What is your name?"

"Sorry I haven't introduced myself," the gray loner apologized. "My name is Fish."

Stormpaw coughed to hide his laugh.

"That suits you," Stagfoot nodded. "I hope StarClan will let me name you. Fish, until you have completed your training, you will be now known as Fishpaw."

The newly named Fishpaw looked startled. "Oh, er, thanks. I guess that suits me more. Maybe. Because I swim, you know?"

"Snake, until you have completed your training, you will be now known as Splashpaw."

Splashpaw tilted his head. "It's kinda weird, but I'll accept it."

Stormpaw flattened his ears. "It's an honor to receive your name!" Ivypaw nudged him again. Splashpaw dipped his head to her, and again, she shyly avoided his gaze.

"Ivypaw, Stormpaw, step forwards," Stagfoot announced. Ivypaw and Stormpaw walked up to him. They looked up to him in wonder, knowing what would happen next.

"StarClan, I hope you will approve of these names. I am not a Clan leader, but will act as one until you have sent us a sign. Ivypaw, Stormpaw, will you uphold the warrior code, even at the cost of your lives?"

"I do," Stormpaw and Ivypaw meowed.

"Then, by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior names. Stormpaw, you will now known as Stormheart. The storm in your heart makes you fiercely protective of our Clanmates. StarClan honors your strength and courage. Ivypaw, you will now be known as Ivyblaze. Though you are quiet, you have great strength. StarClan honors your strength and spirit." Stormheart and Ivyblaze licked his shoulder, as they would do to a leader. Stagfoot rested his head on Stormheart's shoulder, then Ivyblaze's.

Stagfoot cheered. "Stormheart! Ivyblaze!" Splashpaw and Fishpaw caught on. The newly named warriors lifted their heads, eyes shining with pride.

"Your name is powerful," Splashpaw complimented Ivyblaze, his gaze warm.

"Er, thanks," she ducked her head.

Stagfoot taught the new apprentices how the warrior code worked, and their ways of life. At night, Stagfoot kept the first watch.

He sighed. _Do I really have to stay here and become the leader of RiverClan?_

* * *

Shatterheart stood at the river, watching the oblivious Stagfoot.

Cloudleap stood next to him, eyes glinting. "Kill him. He's all alone."

Shatterheart nodded, then started to stalk, excitement pricking his paws.

* * *

Stagfoot was lost in his thoughts. Then, he heard a rustle. He turned his head, but then a blur suddenly dropped onto him.

"Shatterheart!" Stagfoot stared up at the traitor. "What…?"

"I'll here to kill you!" Shatterheart snarled, digging his claws into Stagfoot's shoulders. Stagfoot gasped. He rolled over, squashing Shatterheart underneath him. He heard an "Oof!"

Shatterheart squeezed out from under him, wheezing. Stagfoot rushed at him, but Shatterheart flipped him over, slashing at his exposed belly. Stagfoot screeched.

Then, Ivyblaze and Stormheart came out of their dens.

"What's with all that noise?" Ivyblaze murmured sleepily.

"Stagfoot!" Stormheart yowled. "He's in trouble!" Splashpaw and Fishpaw came out of their dens, also, their eyes wide.

"No!" Stagfoot growled at his Clanmates. "Don't help me!" Shatterheart took advantage to this distraction, ripping more at his belly.

"No!" Ivyblaze screamed. She ran forward. Splashpaw gently drew her back. "He decides to battle alone." Shatterheart turned his head towards Ivyblaze, grinning.

Stagfoot clamped his teeth onto Shatterheart neck, biting down hard. Shatterheart choked, falling to the ground next to him. Then his eyes quickly glazed over.

"Stagfoot…" Stormheart and Ivyblaze rushed up to him. Blood spilled out of Stagfoot's belly like a river.

"Stormheart...lead...this...Clan…" Stagfoot rasped. "Though you are...young...you...can lead...this Clan." Stormheart looked surprised. Splashpaw and Fishpaw crowded around him worriedly.

"Stagfoot," Ivyblaze touched his shoulder with her nose. "You were a good mentor." Stormheart joined her.

"Don't worry," Stagfoot murmured, smiling weakly. "Shatterheart's dead." He closed his eyes, their voices drifting away. _I hope you can see me, Reedstar_ , Stagfoot thought hazily. _I avenged you all...my precious Clan..._

* * *

 **Well, the ending's kinda tragic. I hope you enjoyed the challenge!**


End file.
